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58 - Quaternary Sediments and Soils of Jordan

Palaeoclimatic and Geoarchaeological Implications

from Part V: - Quaternary Geomorphology

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 May 2017

Yehouda Enzel
Affiliation:
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Ofer Bar-Yosef
Affiliation:
Harvard University, Massachusetts
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Summary

There is a great variety of geomorphic features and Quaternary sedimentary deposits in the territory of Jordan; many of these features and deposits have not been researched or dated in extensive detail. Recently, a surge of research has provided valuable information on the evolution of the Jordanian Quaternary landscape. This chapter presents an overview of the country’s physiographic and geological context, with particular focus on the nomenclature of the Quaternary stratigraphy, and an overview of information on alluvial, aeolian, lacustrine, palustrine, cave and rock-shelter, and volcanic depositional environments and their associated soils. The chapter includes a discussion of the most important aspects of Jordan’s Quaternary stratigraphy for understanding the country’s archaeology since Palaeolithic times. In doing so, a short summary of the relationship between physiographic features and geoarchaeological research is provided, as are some brief comments on palaeoclimatic correlations with the broader Levant and southwest Asia.
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Chapter
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Quaternary of the Levant
Environments, Climate Change, and Humans
, pp. 531 - 538
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2017

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